This morning, i.e. on 17th December, residents of Seelampur, a Muslim majority residential colony in East Delhi, planned a local rally through the area with a mass meeting on the Seelampur-Jaffrabad road. Protests had been on in the colony almost daily against Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and NRC. Today the rally proceeded through the Colony with shopkeepers downing shutters to join the March. They were just reaching the Seelampur Jaffrabad crossing when suddenly someone stoned a police picket and motorcycle which were to one corner. Immediately Police lathi charge started, protestors were beaten back towards colony while on main road a two buses including a school bus were being shown broken along with scores of motorcycles.

The incident two days earlier around Jamia university in Sarai Julena – Mathura Road – New Friends Colony area comes immediately to mind as a similar script is repeated by Delhi police which comes under the Central govt. There are clear videos of the area around Jamia where police briskly broke standing motorcycles and pouring liquids inside standing buses. Similarly, in the area behind a crowd retreating while being lathicharged, buses are stoned and may even be burnt and the protestors supposedly are responsible. In this case one of the buses is a school bus. In NFC too the police said stones were thrown while passengers were in the buses but no one was injured.

In Seelampur eye witnesses stated that breaking of buses took place “mysteriously’ as no protesters were at the place where this vandalism occurred. Besides policemen who are seen indulging in the violence not only against the protesters but also in damaging public and private property. There are also irrefutable evidence of RSS cadres participating in these attacks. A video shows a ABVP leader in riot police fatigue along with police in Jamia violence. Similarly, a RSS youth is seen with police while protesters are being attacked in Lucknow (UP). An activist from outside the University is seen participating in attack on Delhi University students protesting against CAA & attacks on Jamia students on December 16. This trend of RSS cadres not only politically opposing the protests but there are reports that they are participating with police where police is under the control of RSS-BJP Govts., in attacking the protesters and indulging in vandalism which is being blamed on the  protesters.

It is to be noted that protests inside Seelampur have been regularly going on since passage of CAA just as in other areas of Delhi. Since December 15, protests in all areas got coupled with protests against police barbarism with Jamia students. Authorities of Safdurjung hospital have affirmed treating gunshot injuries after police violence in Jamia area despite police denial that they had not opened fire at all.

It is very clear that Delhi police, which falls under Central Govt., went all out to create a communal issue out of protests against CAA in Jamia area. They failed there and now the same script is being tried at Seelampur. Anti CAA and anti- NRC protests are on in all parts of Delhi in which people of all communities are participating but this is sought to be denied and subverted. Apart from that, Muslims’ right to protest against the overtly communal bills is also under attack. Targeting the areas and institutions where Muslims are in significant numbers is premeditated and part of RSS conspiracy.

Delhi Committee of CPI(ML) New Democracy decries and condemns the conspiracy to communalize  anti CAA protests in Delhi and also the systematic attacks and violence by police especially in areas and institutions where Muslims are in significant numbers. We call on all democratic forces in Delhi to stand even more united, intensify united protests against  communal and anti people CAA and NRC, demand punishment for police officers guilty of violence on Jamia students, including women students, and the police guilty of entering the University without permission and destroying the library.

We call on people of Delhi –

Let us defeat communal conspiracies of the RSS Central Govt. against peace and harmony in our city.

Delhi Committee,

CPI(ML)-New Democracy

December 17, 2019